Theistic evolutionists may not quite subscribe to this extreme atheistic view, but, in their opinion, man is still the product of a natu- ralistic process subject to natural selection, an end product of an eon old struggle for survival of the fittest. This, of necessity, implies that the less fit did not make it and that their lineage has been relegated to the scrap heap of extinction. This view is in direct conflict with the plainest statements of Scripture and requires substantial intel- lectual gymnastics in order to achieve some form of consensus. The Scriptures plainly state that the origin of the physical and biological world lies with God, and that man was created in the image of God for a purpose. The cosmology of the Bible leaves no room for a naturalistic origin of the universe or of living organisms. The very first statement in Scripture identifies God as the Creator:
In the beginning, God created the Heavens and the Earth. Genesis 1:1
This statement does not define when this beginning took place, and many consider it to provide room for long ages by placing this beginning into the nebulous past and allowing for a more recent biological creation. However, this would create problems with the creation of the sun and the moon, which according to the creation account were only created on day four. Verse 16 also states that God made the stars also, but this could be a parenthetical statement and could allow for the stars to have been created at an earlier time.
However, the use of the definite article ‘the’ in the words ‘In the beginning’ implies a definite time for this beginning and not some nebulous past event. The use of the same definite article in the designation of the days of creation, i.e. ‘the first day, the second day’ etc. also implies a literal twenty four hour day and not long periods of time. This is further substantiated by the designation of ordinal numbers for the days (day one, day two, …) which also points to a literal 24 hour day (Hebrew ‘yom’).
The heavens, according to Scripture, were thus not derived from an arbitrary process but were created by God and proclaim the glory of God.
The Heavens declare the glory of God, the skies proclaim the work of His hands. Psalms 19:1
When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained. Psalm 8:3
Thou, even thou, art Lord alone; thou hast made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth, and all [things] that [are] therein, the seas, and all that is therein, and thou preservest them all; and the host of heaven worshippeth thee. Nehemiah 9:6
Seek him that maketh the seven stars and Orion,
…. Amos 5:8
He telleth the number of the stars; He calleth them all by [their] names. Psalm 147:4
An interesting verse on cosmology in the Bible is found in the
book of Job:
Canst thou bind the sweet influences of Pleiades,
or loose the bands of Orion? Job 38:31
Within galaxies, there are different kinds of star clusters known as “Galactic Clusters’ or ‘Open Clusters’, and practically all of them are flying apart rapidly. The reason for this phenomenon appears to be that there is not enough mass to hold them together, but the Pleiades seem to be an exception to this rule since there appears to be sufficient mass to hold the cluster together and to prevent it from disrupting. Scientists call such a cluster a ‘bound cluster’. Moreover, astronomical observations show that the belt of Orion is certainly being loosened. The stars in the constella- tion are moving apart rapidly, and one of the clusters in the Orion constellation, the famous “Trapezium” is flying apart so rapidly that cosmologists are astounded, since by all calculations they could have been touching just thousands of years ago. The ques- tion posed to Job only really finds meaning in our time where the science of cosmology is expanding our vision of the universe.
These verses quoted previously leave no room for com- promise on the issue of who created the universe and who holds it together. The method of creation is also clearly defined:
By the word of the Lord were the heavens made; and all the host of them by the breath of His mouth. For he spake, and it was done; He commanded, and it stood fast. Psalm 33:6,9
Creation not only points to God’s existence but also places respon- sibilities on us as well:
For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse. Romans 1:20
The Old and the New Testament are in complete agreement on the issue of creation and introduce a personal creator who not only created man in His image, but also redeemed him after the fall. According to the Scriptures, the creator who spoke and it stood fast was none other than Jesus Christ Himself:
God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, hath in these last days spoken unto us by His Son, whom He hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also He made the worlds. Hebrews 1:1,2
And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ. Ephesians 3:9
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us. John 1:1,3,10,14
In this verse we also have the words ‘In the beginning’, but in the original Greek the definite article ‘the’ is omitted, unlike its equivalent verse in Genesis 1. In the Hebrew mindset and syntax, this implies that there was no definite beginning to the Word, but that the Word was there from the beginning. It is this incredible attention to detail, which underscores the veracity of the Scrip- tures. Further verses showing Jesus Christ to be the Creator are:
But to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in Him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him. 1 Corinthians 8:6
For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether [they be] thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by Him, and for Him: And He is before all things, and by Him all things consist. Colossians 1:16,17
This Jesus Christ, according to the Scriptures, is none other than God manifest in the flesh who made the earth to be inhabited, for His good pleasure, and who will come again to redeem His people.
Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; Who gave himself for us, that He might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto Himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.
Titus 2:13,14
For thus saith the Lord that created the heavens; God Himself that formed the earth and made it; He hath established it, He created it not in vain, He formed it to be inhabited: I am the Lord; and there is none else. Isaiah 45:18
These statements leave no room for a pantheon of gods and make God personally responsible for every detail of creation. According to Genesis 1:27, God created man in His own image, and He created them male and female. Moreover, the creation was a personal act, the pinnacle of His creation and not the result of evolution from chaos.
And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul. … And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof; And the rib, which the Lord God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man. Genesis 2:7, 21, 22
Man was not only created in the image of God, but he was also assigned a position of authority and was to rule over the earth.
And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. Genesis 1:26
There is not the slightest room for evolutionary ideas to be substan- tiated by these plain statements of Scripture. Moreover, the problem is compounded by the Scriptural account of the events subsequent to the creation of man. Life was granted man on condition of obedi- ence to God’s ordinances and would be forfeited on disobedience. The test of obedience was the tree of the knowledge of good and evil from which Adam and Eve were forbidden to eat. The day they should choose to disobey, they would become subject to death.
But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die. Genesis 2:17
For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God [is] eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Romans 6:23
Herein lies a further dilemma for theistic evolutionists. Death, ac- cording to the Scriptures, is a consequence of sin, but according to the theory of evolution, death is the means of advancement to a higher level. The survival of the fittest to the detriment (death) of the less fit is the means whereby progress is made. Without the constant cycle of death and survival, no evolutionary progress is possible. Once again, the two worldviews are in disharmony with each other. This however, is not the least of the compromises that the theistic evolutionists have to make in order to fit their world- view into the stranglehold of the Scriptural texts. The sequence of events portrayed in creation week cannot be synchronized with evolutionary events either.